7 Sep 2016

Make Time for Chair Yoga

Years ago when I was a student at University, I was also a student of Yoga. I learned and I practised asanas (poses) and pranayama
(breathing techniques) with diligent focus and integrity. So much so, that I
even managed to train for a year to acquire a Yoga teacher training diploma.

One thing led to another and my eager enthusiasm in the
practice of Yoga fizzled out. I find that parenthood has led to the reawakening
of some of my long forgotten pursuits. Writing, for one. Yoga is another one to
make it to the list of gradual awakenings.

It must be something to do with the acute awareness of one’s
body and its associated aches and pains that come into sharp focus when your
five year old tries to rugby tackle you. Aargh! Even the memory of that tangle
is painful. Gentle Yogic postures and stretches, I suddenly recalled, are an
excellent solution to this problem of a knotty neck and sore limbs.

I bet I am not alone with this oft overlooked problem of a sedentary
lifestyle and long hours of slouching over a computer keyboard. Occupational health reminds us to
take screen breaks at induction and at every annual refresher. If you, like me,
are a work-from-home person with no recourse to occ health naggings, then you
just forget about those breaks. Until that moment when those overwrought muscles
wrench into spasm.

I now make a conscious effort to stop and stretch for at
least five minutes every hour that I am sat at a screen. That includes the
phone as well. Don’t tell me those thumbs don’t hurt with all that texting and
scrolling!

It is never too late to put an action plan into place. Check
out these really simple and easy to do Yoga poses put together by Furniture at Work. You can practise them at your desk, sat in your chair. All you need is to
remember to take that break. Put a reminder on your phone if you have to. We have
alerts set up for everything else. Now is the time to set one for what really matters.
You!

I'm exactly like you - but this made me smile because the cat-cow position at the top I do all of the time...and I learned it playing rugby! Haha! I do the spinal thing too - again, rugby. There is nothing like a good stretch, but I do want to learn more about yoga now I, like you, can't take too many tackles!